Mayonnaise and food influences from abroad

Share

Maó has a place in culinary history as the eighteenth-century birthplace of mayonnaise (mahonesa). Various legends, all of them involving the French, claim to identify its inventor: take your pick from the chef of the French commander besieging Maó; a peasant woman dressing a salad for another French general; or a housekeeper disguising rancid meat from the taste buds of a French officer. The French also changed the way the Menorcans bake their bread, while the British started the dairy industry and encouraged the roasting of meat.